History Film / AnAmericanCrime

* In real life, the incident that got Sylvia locked in the cellar was that she needed a gym uniform for school. When Gertrude refused to give her the money, and found out Sylvia managed to get one anyway, she accused her of theft and imprisoned her of punishment. The movie gives Gertrude the slightly more tragic excuse of seeing her own daughters follow her own mistakes, and take things out on the more innocent Sylvia.

** There's a point where, after spending all of her time torturing Sylvia, Gertrude gently washes her and is able to interact with her calmly, indicating that she's got a grip again. She loses it as soon as the local church's priest speaks to her about suspicions that Paula is pregnant, causing her to start lashing out at Sylvia yet again.

* JustFollowingOrders: In the courtroom scenes, there is a horrific sequence in which child after child, when asked why they hurt Sylvia, replies, "Gertie told me to." Remember, the dialogue in the courtroom sequences is taken from trial transcripts, meaning that they really all said this.

* JustFollowingOrders: In the courtroom scenes, there is a horrific sequence in which child after child, when asked why they hurt Sylvia, replies, "Gertie told me to."

* JustFollowingOrders: The excuse that many of the people involved with Sylvia's death give.

** The real-life Gertrude and Paula also showed no remorse for their crimes, with Paula becoming a real-life case of KarmaHoudiniWarranty when she went on to live a normal life under a new name... at least until 2012, when she was fired from her job as a school counselor's aide when the school discovered her true identity and history.

Creator/ElliotPage and Creator/CatherineKeener star in this dramatization of the real-life story of Sylvia Likens and Gertrude Baniszewski.

* TheDogBitesBack: After the police are called, the first thing Jenny does is run to the cops and tell them "Get me out of here and I'll tell you everything". The next shot? ''She tells the court everything Gertrude did to her sister''.

* DolledUpInstallment: ''Film/TheAfflicted'', a later true crime film with a similar premise [[note:not inspired by the Likens case, but the equally horrific abuse perpetrated by Theresa Knorr]], has the alternate title of ''"Another American Crime"''.

* DolledUpInstallment: ''The Afflicted'', a later true crime film with a similar premise [[note:not inspired by the Likens case, but the equally horrific abuse perpetrated by Theresa Knorr]], has the alternate title of ''"Another American Crime"''.

* DolledUpInstallment: ''The Afflicted'', a later true crime film with a similar premise, has the alternate title of ''"Another American Crime"''.

* AdultFear: The worst fear of every parent who left their child in the care of a friend's family.

** What Gertrude did to Sylvia in real life was ''even worse'' than what the movie shows (there's no mention, for instance, of how Gertrude, besides the physical abuse, deliberately starved both Sylvia and Jenny). The same applies to Paula, whose portrayal in the film implies that she had some sympathy for Sylvia. The RealLife Paula felt the same about torturing Sylvia as her mother did.
** The real-life Gertrude and Paula also showed no remorse for their crimes, with Paula becoming a real-life case of KarmaHoudiniWarranty when she went on to live a normal life under a new name...until 2012, when she was fired from her job as a school counselor's aide when the school found out her true identity.

** Sylvia's DyingDream of escaping and reuniting with her parents. You know it won't last, but still.

** There's a point where, after spending all of her time torturing Sylvia, Gertrude gently washes her and is able to interact with her calmly, indicating that she's got a grip again. She loses it as soon as the local church's priest speaks to her about suspicions that Paula is pregnant, causing her to start lashing out at Sylvia again.

* KidsAreCruel: What Gertrude did was horrific enough, but that so many other kids would join in makes it even worse.
* LastDisrespects: Jenny got hers in real life after Gertrude died a mere five years after being released from prison. Upon seeing Gertrude's obituary, Jenny wrote to her mother, "Some good news. Damn old Gertrude died. Ha ha ha! I am glad for that."
* MamaBear: Most of the abuse starts when Paula complains to Gertrude about Sylvia "spreading lies."
* MarkOfShame: Gertrude (and later Ricky, when Gertrude is unable to finish) burns "I'M A PROSTITUTE AND PROUD OF IT" on Sylvia's stomach with a hot needle.

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler: Maybe. By the end, when Gertrude is sentenced, her kids cry at the fact of their actions ''and'' the loss of their mother. When Gertrude is in prison and sees the spirit of Sylvia, she begins to tear up and tries to mouth the words "I'm sorry", before Sylvia fades away]].
* PosthumousNarration: Sylvia is telling her own story.

* SlutShaming: Gertrude does this to Sylvia for allegedly flirting with a boy.

* TeenPregnancy: Gertrude had her oldest daughter Paula at a young age, and Paula herself gets pregnant by her married, much-older boyfriend. Gertrude is unable to deal with the thought that Paula made the same mistake she did, leading her to blame poor Sylvia and ultimately torture her to death.

** There comes a point where we're lead to believe that Sylvia will escape and be reunited with her family. The audience knows this won't last.

* CompositeCharacter: Patty Ryan is a composite of three real-life girls involved in the historical events - Darlene [=MacGuire=], Anna Siscoe, and Judy Duke. It says something about the horror of the case that ''so many outside people'' were involved that some of them had to be condensed for the sake of clarity.

* HistoricalVillainDowngrade: What Gertrude did to Sylvia in real life was ''even worse'' than what the movie shows (there's no mention, for instance, of how Gertrude, besides the physical abuse, deliberately starved both Sylvia and Jenny). The same applies to Paula, whose portrayal in the film implies that she had some sympathy for Sylvia. The RealLife Paula felt the same about torturing Sylvia as her mother did.

That lesson culminated in what state prosecutors later called "the worst crime ever committed against a single person in the state of Illinois."

* BasedOnATrueStory: Based on the murder of Sylvia Likens, a.k.a. "The Illinois Torture Murder." All dialogue from the courtroom scenes are drawn directly from the court transcripts.

* CompositeCharacter: Patty Ryan is a composite of three real-life girls involved in the historical events - Darlene [=MacGuire=], Anna Siscoe and Judy Duke. It says something about the horror of the case that ''so many outside people'' were involved that some of them had to be condensed for the sake of clarity.

* MayDecemberRomance : Gertrude and Andy. Keener was 48 at the time of filming, and Creator/JamesFranco was 29. A case of RealLifeWritesThePlot, as the real "Andy" was 18 to Gertrude's 34 when they began dating.

Creator/EllenPage and Creator/CatherineKeener star in this dramatization of the real-life story of Sylvia Likens and Gertrude Baniszewski.

Creator/EllenPage and Catherine Keener star in this dramatization of the real-life story of Sylvia Likens and Gertrude Baniszewski.

At first things seem okay. Sylvia and Jenny get along well with the Baniszewski children, and Sylvia befriends eldest daughter Paula Baniszewski. But Gertrude begins to resent these strangers amongst her own family, blaming them for all their recent troubles. Gradually her rage begins to focus exclusively on sixteen-year-old Sylvia, who seems to embody everything Gertrude lacks: youth, beauty, spirit, exuberance, hope. All things that Sylvia must be punished for.